Bowling for Forks
by Ish Cat
Summary: Anyone ever heard of Bowling for Columbine? What about 19 Minutes? A one-shot with a E/B spin on the tragedy that is a school shooting.


Bowling for Forks

Yes, this is exactly what you are thinking. Let the tears and disgust begin.

Unknown POV:

The thing about death at your own hand is you expect to be the last one laughing. But you're not. You never learn what people's reactions are. You will not see people cry at your funeral. Death really is the end.

Until the next life, if there is one.

BPOV:

5 Days After

I woke up this morning screaming.

I wasn't as surprised anymore. I knew it was coming every night when I went to bed every time I closed my eyes. Images I didn't want to remember were forced back into my head, like a really annoying song that you can't stop humming.

Charlie was in the shower; I could hear the water running quietly on the other side of the wall. He used to be so lenient around me, not caring whether I skipped meals or ate a full breakfast, lunch and dinner. Now that's all he cared about.

The first night I woke up screaming after _it_ happened, Charlie came running into my bedroom. He hesitated at my doorframe for a second and then rushed to my side, awkwardly sitting on the side of my twin bed. He just waited, rubbing my shoulder while I cried.

I sighed and pushed off the sheets on my bed- I knew I wasn't going to be able to sleep anymore.

Today was the day the detective was coming to interview me. He wanted to know why the killer had left me alive, yet killed everyone around me.

8 Months Before

"Nerd," Mike fake whispered to me, but really the whole hallway full of noisy teenagers could hear him as we passed Edward. Inside, I silently cringed on behalf of Edward, but I just smiled up at Mike as he squeezed my shoulders a little too tightly.

Edward and I used to be best friends. I remember that time well. That was before high school, when I met Jessica and Mike. I remember Edward used to always help me with math and science, and I would color his art projects for him.

Jessica smiled as she walked up to me and grabbed my hand, pulling me off towards the girls' bathroom. Mike growled and Jessica rolled her eyes. Mike kissed my cheek and let me go.

As I walked off with Jessica, I looked behind me and saw Edward watching me from the doorway down the hall. His eyes held such sadness and agony that I had to look away- how do you look something in the eye that reminds you all too much of yourself, especially when you hate what you've become?

7 Months Before

Jessica was spending the night at my house- not an unusual occurrence for a Sunday night, but tonight she was extra restless.

"Charlie's not home," she said, looking at me with mischief and happiness floating in her eyes. I shook my head no. "Come on Bella! He wouldn't have to know! And it's not like we would be hosting a party, just Mike and Tyler. We won't even invite Lauren. Please?" she asked, jutting her bottom lip out in a way that made her come across like a spoiled five year old.

"No," I said, standing up and grabbing my bathroom things. "I'm going to take a shower really quickly. We both have school in the morning so why don't you actually look at the homework from Friday?" I suggested as I walked out of the room.

_____________________________________________________________________

I really hated this whole situation I found myself in. I didn't mind being the kid who studied, the kid who followed the rules. But I couldn't do that to any extreme. I was fine just staying under the radar- doing the bare minimum on extra credit or just pretending that my dad made me get straight A's or I couldn't go out anymore.

I never wished for this life, constantly under scrutiny. Like today, for example: I grabbed a slice of pizza instead of a water bottle. Jessica was on top of it before I even sat down.

"That's enough oil to keep a car going," she joked, poking my food with her napkin and watching the grease being absorbed by the thin paper. The others laughed and all the skinny girls at our table took a simultaneous sip out of their water bottles. I pushed my pizza towards Mike who ate it in three bites. I just stared down at my lap.

"Hey Bella," I heard a shy voice saying from my left. I looked up slowly to see none other than Edward standing there, his brown paper bag lunch in hand. "I was wondering if you wanted to come over and sit with me."

I felt my face flush and I looked back at the table as my group of friends erupted in laugher. I heard Tyler high-five Jessica and laugh out a "good job."

"Look Freak, may I call you Freak?" Mike said in a serious tone, standing up from his seat next to me. He didn't wait for Edward's response before he continued. "Bella doesn't go for the weird types. So go back to jacking off with the picture of her we all know is taped inside your locker."

I heard the table laugh, and then the crash of a brown paper bag and chips hitting the floor. I glanced up to see Mike doubled over laughing and Edward's pants on the ground, his hands covering himself up.

I felt the tears begin to well up in my eyes and I could see the same in Edward's as he grabbed his pants and sprinted out of the lunchroom, all in one big movement. I heard the laughter echo through the whole cafeteria and I willed the tears back, forcing a smile to show the rest of the table. I reminded myself that I needed to act like the rest of the crowd. They believed if you're not one of "us", then your one of "them." Edward was one of "them".

6 Months Before

Mike grabbed my hands and shoved them above my head. He had already taken my clothes off and put a sock in my mouth. My body was numb, I was already shutting down my mind, willing myself to just black out already.

The first couple of times, I did fight back. I got knocked out by Mike for resisting. Later I stopped fighting back so I wouldn't have to make up excuses as to why my eye was black or my arm was bruised. That was when I learned that it was a gift to black out. To not have to mentally endure this.

I waited for the smell of rubber to assault my nose with the scent I had grown to hate. I waited for the terrible feeling of bare skin getting a burn from the rubber moving back and forth quickly, rough friction agitating the sensitive skin. But it never came. I didn't smell the gross rubber condom. I just felt Mike shove into me, a squeak escaping.

Then I began to struggle. I tried to fight back. I wasn't on the pill. I needed that condom. Mike's grip on my wrists tightened with one hand as he lowered the other hand down to punch my stomach.

"I just wanted to feel you one time," he said softly in my ear, still pumping inside me. I felt my sobs wrack my body.

5 Months Before

I wasn't going to give up the baby. I didn't want to. I felt so alone. I wanted this one small gift that was given to me, no matter how bad the circumstances, to be mine. I wanted a baby who would love me as much as I would love it.

I should have known that Mike would know my cycles better than I did. He knew right away.

"Bitch!" He yelled at me. I cowered on the couch. He spent an hour yelling how much of a shitty mom I would be, and to be thankful he was here to help me get an abortion. He left my dad a note saying we were going out to Port Angeles for the Saturday and I wouldn't be back until around five.

5 Days After

"I just can't remember anything," I sobbed. "I don't know why I'm so sad, or why I can't remember anything, I just can't."

The officer looked at my sympathetically. "I know sweetie. The brain is a tricky place."

EPOV

4 Months After

Life basically is hell. I looked around my plain jail cell. I stared at the camera for a good five minutes. They just watched me all day, it was probably their entertainment- watching me crap or something. But that was life now. I would just have to get used to it.

8 Months Before

"Freak," Mike Newton yelled to the hallway as he passed me. I looked up at Bella and saw her look away.

We used to be friends. Until high school when she met Mike and Jessica. I went through a period where I had no friends after that. I was alone, during the time in my life that nobody wants to be alone.

There was a brief respite when I met Jasper on my soccer team. We both had absolutely no talent and were benchwarmers. The difference between Jasper and I was that he was a proud benchwarmer- he joked with the few others and me who would occasionally sit on the bench when hurt. We just talked about computers and how stupid people like Mike and Tyler were.

But even he left me, managing to get one of the hottest girls in school, Alice, after he joked around in classes and became the class clown. He got friends like Emmett, student body president, and Rosalie, the head cheerleader. I was left behind.

I could be classified as a stalker. I watched Bella whenever she was in the same hallway, room, or general vicinity. I don't think she noticed me, actually I know she didn't notice me.

I slowly began to fall in love with her. I noticed her new quirks, habits, and hang-ups. She had changed. Back when we were friends, I couldn't get her to shut up or step down from a fight. Now she mostly just sat quietly and watched her new friends. Sometimes she seemed in a totally different world and a small smile would grace her beautiful lips.

7 Months Before

I should have known she wouldn't feel the same way, but I had to find out. I had to tell her that I knew she wasn't happy with them, that I knew she wanted out but didn't know how to get away from Mike. I wanted to let her know that I would help her. So I sent her an e-mail. It really did seem like a good idea at the time.

I explained that I loved her, that she meant so much to me, and I just wanted her back as my best friend. I know, it was probably a little much, but before I could fight with myself too much, I hit 'send.'

The next day at school, Bella didn't seem to notice me anymore than before. (This was none in case you have forgotten.) She didn't appear happy, mad, sad, or frustrated- just devoid of any normal emotion. I thought maybe I sent the email to the wrong person by mistake.

Later that day, Jessica approached me in the hall when almost everybody had gone to class- so no one would see her with me, probably.

"Look, I don't want to be seen with you but Bella made me come talk to you, since I'm her best friend," she started out, looking at her nails to show her disinterest. I nodded, ready for her to tell me off and to stop bugging her. "She likes you, too. For some unknown reason, Bella is interested."

"Wait- how do I know you're telling the truth?" I asked skeptically before my hopes could get too high. She rolled her eyes. I hated Jessica; she always was rolling her eyes or trying to act like she was better than everyone around her.

"Why would I tell you if she really didn't? But the thing is, she's scared about leaving Mike without knowing you'll be there to catch her. So you have to show her you really mean business," she explained. I nodded and felt the shy smile spread over my face. She turned quickly and walked into her classroom across the hall right as the bell rang. I was late.

At lunch that day, I looked around to see Bella and her group of friends in their normal seats. Jessica seemed to be touching Bella's food and the rest of the table laughed while Bella blushed and pushed her tray over to Mike who ate it quickly. Bella stared down at her lap.

I took a deep breath and walked right over to her. The table seemed to freeze as I walked up. Bella didn't even notice me. They all looked at me with the ever popular 'what the fuck are you doing in our general vicinity' look. They all did it, and the frustrating part was that they had been doing this for so long, it was like a reflex.

"Hey Bella," I started and she looked up at me. I took that as a good sign and kept going. "I was wondering if you wanted to come sit with me today?"

Her mouth opened and closed and all I could do was stare at her face, blushing and gaping at me, as if I sprouted a second head. I didn't even notice Mike stand up.

His speech was long and demeaning, the same old things he usually said to me – whenever he stooped to address me. I felt anger boil up within me, the anger I kept bottled in the pit of my stomach. I saw him reach for me and as I tensed myself up for the punch, I felt my pants whoosh down my legs, the breeze not so comforting.

People always say you freeze when something like this happens. There is no freezing involved. The cafeteria seemed to burst out in laughter the minute my jeans hit the floor, and my hands reacted on autopilot to cover myself.

I looked up to see Bella looking back down at her lap, her eyes hurt. But she wouldn't say anything. I knew her well enough from the watching that she wouldn't stand up for herself anymore. She sure as hell wouldn't stand up for me either.

I barely registered where I was going or what I was doing until I was in the boy's bathroom (my pants up, thankfully). The picture of us that had been in my locker was ripped up and being flushed down the toilet.

There was something gratifying about seeing someone else's head, even in a picture, being swirled down the toilet instead of my own. Or maybe it was the idea that someone's head was being swirled with my own, which made it more comforting.

5 Months After

There's not much to think about when you're in a jail cell. Maybe that's the point: that I shouldn't have much to think about. Maybe I'll reflect back on my heinous activities and learn from them. That's what a jail cell was made for- thinking. I had nothing to think about other than what I had done, though.

_I don't know when the initial planning began. I guess a while back, I unknowingly started playing a video game online – before I realized that to beat the game you had to shoot people in the school. I probably got the real idea a year before it happened. _

_The night of the pants incident, I decided to do it. I hated myself, I hated my life, and I hated that Bella had to endure the pain that went along with her life. I could kill two birds with one stone. Well, more like five or more birds with one stone. Or one gun. _

_I even had hacked into the school computer system for this special occasion. I planted a little screen default set to go off when I started. I researched car bombs, and how to make them from regular everyday materials. This wasn't that hard to find, surprisingly. Every little detail of my plan was easily taken from the Internet._

_I had my plan all mapped out and it was going to happen today, the name calling, the swirlies, the locker shoving, the punching, the over-all bullying was going to end today. _

_I waited until I heard both my parent's cars leave for the morning before I quickly ran down to the cellar to grab my dad's two handguns; their black metal shining with the fresh polish my dad had put on them last night so they would shine in his collector's case. _

_I ran back up and grabbed the two car bombs I had assembled and ran back down stairs. I planned on attaching them to a car. That way I would have a distraction as I entered the school. And I wanted to blow up Mike's truck. Like the time he spray-painted my Volvo and used it for batting practice; he might as well have blown up my car. _

_I took a steadying breath and looked at the clock- it was 8:45. I was officially 45 minutes late and my parents would get a call at an hour late, so I hustled into my car and headed off to school. Once I was in the parking lot, I shoved the two guns deeper into my backpack and walked over to Mike's F150. I flipped the activation switches before I attached one bomb below the engine. The other I just threw into the bed of the truck. They were timed to go off at 9:04. _

_I walked into my class__, __Computer Skills 101, and sat down quietly. I felt a wad of paper hit my head and picked it up off the ground. It said:_

_Too busy jacking off to notice you were late for school, Freak?_

_I looked around and saw Tyler flipping me off._

_I crushed the paper in my hand and took a deep breath. I looked at the clock and felt the corners of my mouth turn up. It was 9:03. At 9:05 all hell would break loose. _

_9:04. I reached a hand inside my backpack, feeling the cool metal brush up against my fingertips and it relaxed me. I heard the comforting noise of an explosion in the parking lot that only calmed me further. The students all looked at each other with the same questioning glances. _

_9:05. All the computer screens popped up with a message in black ink against a red background: Ready or not, here I come. _

_I saw Tyler's face twist in confusion, and that was my cue. I lifted up the gun and aimed it at his head, pulling the trigger twice in about three seconds flat. A personal record for me, even with all my video game experience. _

_I heard a collective scream from the class as they all dashed for the door. No one else on my shit list was in this classroom. I walked quickly over to Tyler and looked into his still open eyes, all the life gone from them and blood splattered everywhere - just like in a movie. For some reason, I felt calmer, truly calmer than I had felt in a long while. _

_I smiled and made my way quickly, slinging my backpack over my shoulder as I walked into the halls. Looking around as panicked people rushed in the opposite direction from the way I was heading, I spotted Jessica and Lauren running into the girls' bathroom. I followed. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. They were dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. _

_I searched for Mike, expecting Bella to be with him. Finally I spotted him running into the boys' locker room with Bella's wrist tightly grasped in his hand. I ran after them. Soon they were cornered in the last row of lockers. _

"_Edward, think about this. Just take a deep breath and put the gun down," Mike said. The asshat was not pushing Bella behind him or trying to protect her in anyway. I looked at her. There was actual fear in her eyes. It was an emotion – that was unusual for her these days. _

_I set my backpack down; the gun still trained on Mike, and took out the other gun, carefully handing it to Bella. She stared at it for a minute, but Mike was screaming at her. "Shoot him! Bella, shoot him!" I saw his grip tighten significantly around her wrist, but she barely noticed it. She was staring at me, the gun held tightly in her hand but pointed at the ground. _

_Mike made a grab for the gun and I quickly shot him in the side. He crumbled on the floor, his arms wrapped around his middle. That didn't stop the blood from seeping through his shirt and trickling down his arms, onto the floor. _

"_God damn it Bella, shoot him!" Mike screamed. Something snapped and she swung the gun in his direction, shooting without aiming, but still hitting her intended target. _

_Mike bounced against the wall and fell over. Bella dropped the gun quickly and looked back up at me, tears streaming down her face. _

"_Oh my god, what have I done?" she whispered her hands covering her mouth. She sunk down on her knees, trembling and shaking her head as she went into shock. I could hear the police shouting orders at each other to come look inside the room. I grabbed the gun from the floor and hit Bella in the back of the head with the handle of the pistol. _

_I pointed the gun at my face, but just as I was about to pull the trigger, a police officer came in and shoved the gun out of my hand, tackling me to the ground in one big movement._

6 Months After

My trial was on the docket today, but I didn't want to go. I knew everybody would be there, Bella included. I didn't want to see the pain on her face. I especially didn't want to be tempted into telling her secret.

I looked around the cell. My parents had bought me a new suit for my trial and the guards had given it to me this morning. It was lying on my cot. I looked up at the metal box camera that was slightly parted just enough for something to be tied there. My plan was already formed. I just grabbed the tie from my suit and did it.

BPOV

6 Months After

Charlie tried to convince me to not go to the trial, but I wanted to go. I wanted to be there for Edward. Too little, too late; but it might ease my conscience.

When I arrived everyone was still on their feet. I got a seat near the front and saw the officers in the back. Thankfully my father was not among them, waiting in standby to keep order in the gallery or catch Edward if he stupidly tried to escape.

The judge called everyone to order and took a deep breath. "The trial of Edward Cullen, scheduled for today, is canceled. He killed himself this morning in his cell," the judge's voice quivered as the weight of everyone's silence settled over him.

It seemed to click for everyone a second later, but the significance of his announcement didn't register with me so quickly. The crowd tossed around the words 'coward' and 'freak'. Angry citizens who had come to this courtroom for revenge began to shriek. I watched an officer run past me to restrain a particularly upset father who was screaming loudly at the judge as he attempted to climb over the wooden rail that separated the observers from the bench.

Then it registered. Edward was dead. He killed himself right before his trial.

And that was the absolute breaking point for me. I suddenly came to life and quickly jumped the rail myself. I grabbed a gun from an officer who was standing by the jury box. He protested, but I pointed the gun in his direction. The jury noticed, ducking for cover as I climbed into the witness stand backwards, the gun trained on the officer.

Policemen from all around seemed to stop what they were doing to get to me, but I was already to my destination. The gun was pointed at the judge's head, quieting the whole room.

Edward had taken the blame for too long. I didn't want him to take more than he had to, especially for all the shit I had given him, or not prevented. I needed to do this. I took in a deep breath, some how feeling Edward backing up my decision. But that might have been my guilty conscience egging me on, my love for Edward leaking out and clouding my already bleary mind with guilty thoughts.

"I killed Mike Newton!" I screamed.

The silence was tangible as I shifted my gaze around the room, taking in everyone's reaction. I looked at the shocked faces until I couldn't see anymore through my blurry eyes. With tears pouring over my cheeks, I positioned the gun into my mouth, pointing upward, and pulled the trigger.


End file.
